Body protection/support device

ABSTRACT

A body protection/support device is provided for arrangement on a body part. The device has a molded body filling of individual molded bodies ( 19, 20 ) accommodated in a receiving enclosure ( 11 ). The receiving enclosure ( 11 ) in an outer part ( 13 ) is substantially remote from the body part and is relatively rigid compared to an inner part ( 12 ), which is substantially directed towards the body part.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a body protection/support device forarrangement on a body part, having a molded body filling of individualmolded bodies accommodated in a receiving enclosure.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

A body protection/support device of the type described initially isknown from DE 296 11 929 U1. The known device comprises a molded bodyfilling of individual resilient molded bodies in a receiving enclosurein the form of a foil pouch and is used for integration into so-calledprotectors, which are used as shin guards, elbow guards, safety helmetsetc. to protect against sports injuries.

With the known device, the intended protective effect may be achievedonly through combination with the protector, which is designed as aseparate component and, unlike the dimensionally compliant foil pouch,has the form of an impact-resistant plastic shell.

SUMMARY AND OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION

The object of-the present invention is to propose a bodyprotection/support device which compared to the known devices, is of aone-piece construction.

According to the invention, a body protection/support device forarrangement on a body part is provided. The device comprises a receivingenclosure and a molded body filling. The molded body filling is made ofindividual molded bodies accommodated in the receiving enclosure. Thereceiving enclosure has an outer part substantially remote from the bodypart. The outer part is relatively rigid compared to an inner part,which is substantially directed towards the body part.

In the case of the device according to the invention, by virtue ofthe—in terms of its dimensional stability—differentiated receivingenclosure the supporting “shell function”, which is achieved in theknown device by an additional component, is realized quasi integrally inthe receiving enclosure. It is therefore possible for the first time topropose a body protection/support device, which enables the desiredprotective function without the need for combination of the receivingenclosure with a further component, namely the protector shell. This notonly enables a considerable improvement in terms of inexpensivemanufacture of such a protection device but also increases thereliability of such devices under load conditions because the protectiondevice according to the invention eliminates the problem presented bythe known protection devices, namely of reliably maintaining theconnection between the outer protector shell and the receiving enclosurealso under load conditions.

In a preferred embodiment of the body protection/support device it isproposed, in order to achieve the differentiated dimensional stabilitybetween the outer part directed towards the load side and the inner partdirected towards the body part, to make the outer part and the innerpart of the receiving enclosure from a common base material so that theyverge continuously one into the other and, in order to form thediffering degrees of stability, to provide the outer part and the innerpart with differing material admixtures and/or use a base material whichhas been subjected to different material treatment in the region of theouter part and in the region of the inner part.

Thus, for example, it is possible to incorporate into the region of thebase material intended for the outer part of the receiving enclosurematerials which mechanically reinforce the base material, such as glassfibers, carbon fibers, aramide fibers, natural fibers, synthetic fibers,also in the form of two-dimensional formed bodies, and to leave theregion of the base material intended for the inner part in its originalstate. It is also possible to achieve differing degrees of materialstability in the region of the outer part and of the inner part of thereceiving enclosure by subjecting the corresponding regions to differingheat treatment.

In a further preferred embodiment of the body protection/support device,the outer part and the inner part of the receiving enclosure are made ofdifferent materials.

In such a case it is particularly advantageous to use, for forming theouter part and the inner part, at least two material layers which areconnected to one another in a transition region in order to form thereceiving enclosure.

As a connection of the material layers in the transition region acohesive connection, i.e. a glued or welded joint for example, isparticularly advantageous.

Particularly good results, in terms of a cohesive connection of thematerial layers in the transition region which is stable under load andinexpensive to manufacture, are achievable by means of a so-called“thermobondod joint”, whereby overlapping edge regions of the materiallayers are pressed against one another under the influence oftemperature.

An integration of the shell function into the receiving enclosure, whichis particularly advantageous and in terms of its protective effect andstability under load matches an outer, separate protector shell, isenabled when at least the outer part of the receiving enclosure takesthe form of a molded part having a dimensionally stable wall.

It is also possible to provide both the outer part and the inner partwith a dimensionally stable wall, wherein the inner part, to enable itto adapt its shape to the body part it is to cover, is preferably lessdimensionally stable than the outer part of the receiving enclosure.

A construction of the body protection/support device which isparticularly advantageous in terms of the desired body protectionfunction and from the point of view of wearing comfort is achieved whenthe outer part has a dimensionally stable wall and the inner part isprovided with a dimensionally compliant wall.

In order to achieve a snug fit against the body part to be covered,which as a rule comprises a spherical surface, the bodyprotection/support device may be designed in such a way that the outerpart and the inner part form an, on the whole, cup-like receivingenclosure.

For covering particular regions or parts of the body, an, on the whole,annular construction of the receiving enclosure formed by the outer partand the inner part also proves advantageous. This applies particularly,when the body protection/support device is intended for use on the kneeor head of a person. The annular construction of the receiving enclosuremoreover affords particularly advantageous ventilation possibilitieswhich further increase wearing comfort.

An embodiment which is particularly advantageous in terms of a furtherincrease of wearing comfort as well as the adaptation, which alleviatesthe effects of external loads, of the inner part to the contour of thebody part to be covered is enabled when, given a dimensionally compliantconstruction of the inner part, there is a vacuum, i.e. a low pressurerelative to the ambient pressure, in the interior space of the receivingenclosure. There are various possibilities available for generating,said vacuum, wherein particularly given the arrangement of a non-returnvalve, which penetrates the receiving enclosure, the vacuum may begenerated by the wearer himself before or as he puts on the bodyprotection/support device. In many cases it may even be sufficient toprovide a facility for evacuating the interior space of the receivingenclosure as the body protection/support device is put on, so that theinner part may be adapted to the contour of the body part to be coveredwithout the dimensional state of the molded body filling achievedthereby having to be frozen by means of a vacuum, i.e. the evacuationserves merely to facilitate adaptation and, once adaptation his beeneffected, aeration is possible once more. The presence of a vacuum orthe generation of a vacuum as the body protection/support device is puton does however have the advantage in terms of wearing comfort that,when the device is put on or positioned, a force directed away from thebody part is generated, which allows the inner part to be adapted farmore comfortably to the body part.

In a particularly advantageous manner, the body protection/supportdevice may be used as a splint device on a body part. With said type ofuse, the protective function is secondary to the support function whichis needed, for example, to splint a bone fracture or support a joint. Insaid case, the dimensionally stable, load-bearing support structure ofthe outer part then performs the actual splint function and thedimensionally compliant design of the inner part directed towards therelevant body part, through adaptation to the body contour, performs thefunction of padding and/or uniform distribution of the force of thepressure introduced by the supporting outer part into the body part.

A use of the body protection/support device as a head protection devicelikewise proves particularly advantageous. In said case, it is namelypossible not only, as described in detail initially, to dispense with aseparate protector shell connected to the actual receiving enclosure andachieve a simplified construction but also, through integration of theprotector shell function in the outer part of the receiving enclosure,to achieve a particularly lightweight design of a head protectiondevice. Said advantageous effect may be further enhanced by selectingthe previously described annular construction of the receiving enclosurefor the use as a head protection device.

The various features of novelty which characterize the invention arepointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming apart of this disclosure. For a better understanding of the invention,its operating advantages and specific objects attained by its uses,reference is made to the accompanying drawings and descriptive matter inwhich preferred embodiments of the invention are illustrated.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 a side view of a body protection/support device in an embodimentas a head protection device;

FIG. 2 the head protection device shown in FIG. 1 in section along thelines II—II in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 a partial view of a head protection device which, compared to thehead protection device shown in FIG. 2, is provided with a non-returnvalve;

FIG. 4 a body protection/support device in an embodiment as a splintdevice.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Referring to the drawings in particular, FIG. 1 shows a bodyprotection/support device in an embodiment as a head protection device10 which, in order to illustrate the arrangement on the head of a personwearing the head protection device 10, is shown arranged on a head. Thetype of head protection device 10 illustrated in FIG. 1 is a lightweightcrash helmet for cyclists having an, on the whole, annular receivingenclosure 11 which comprises an inner part 12 and an outer part 13.

As is evident from the representation according to FIG. 2, which showsthe receiving enclosure 11 with a receiving enclosure cross section 21in a sectional view, the inner part 12 and the outer part 13 eachcomprise a material layer 14, 15, which is cut to size in accordancewith the intended annular shape of the receiving enclosure 11. In such acase, as is particularly evident from a combined inspection of FIGS. 1and 2, the material layer 15 forming the outer part 13 is situated inthe outwardly directed region of the receiving enclosure 11 which comesinto contact with an obstacle in the event of the wearer of the headprotection device 10 being involved in a crash. The outer part 13 formedby the material layer 15 takes the form of a molded part having adimensionally stable wall 16, whereas the inwardly directed materiallayer 14, which comes into contact with the head of the wearer of thehead protection device 10, forms a—compared to the material layer15—dimensionally compliant wall 17, which in the present cast maymoreover be flexible and enables snug contact between the wall 17 andthe head.

Like the outer part 13, the inner part 12 in the present cast also takesthe form of a molded part.

Situated in an interior space 18 of the receiving enclosure 11 delimitedby the outer part 13 and the inner part 12 is a molded body filling 19of individual molded bodies 20, which in the present case are disposedso as to be movable relative to one another in the interior space 18.The molded bodies 20 may, in terms of their type of material, be soselected that desired damping effects are achievable by means of themolded bodies 20 when a compression of the receiving enclosure crosssection 21 shown in FIG. 2 occurs following an impact load 22 upon theouter part 13 of the receiving enclosure 11 and the molded bodies aresupported against one another. For example, the molded bodies 20 may beformed more or less resiliently from polystyrene, polyethylene,polypropylene as well as from plastic or less compliant materialswherein in the latter case the damping effects are brought aboutsubstantially by the movement of the molded bodies 20 relative to oneanother.

For the material layers 14 and 15 it is possible to use, in each case,material types of a fundamentally identical nature so long as thedesired differing degrees of dimensional stability of the walls 16 and17 are achieved. Thus, for example, a rigid PVC material may be used forthe material layer 15 of the outer part 13 and a non-rigid PVC materialfor the material layer 14 of the inner part 12-Polyurethanes are alsousable, in which case the differentiated dimensional stability betweeninner part and outer part may be achieved, for example, by differentmaterial thicknesses.

As is further clearly evident from FIG. 2, the material layers 14, 15,which form the inner part 12 and the outer part 13 respectively, areconnected in a flange-like manner to one another in the outer and inneredge regions 23, 24 and 25, 26 respectively so as to form transitionregions 27, 28. In the present case, the transition regions 27, 28 areproduced in a thermobonding process, which is part of a thermal shapingprocess for producing the total molded part formed by the inner part 12and the outer part 13 and is effected during the formation of the innerpart and outer part by pressing together the molded part halves in theparting plane of a two-part mold. Such a process, whereby two materiallayers during the shaping to produce a one-piece total molded part arethermally bonded to one another in the parting plane of the mould, isknown in the trade as a “twin-sheet” shaping process.

FIG. 3 is used to illustrate a head protection device 29 designed as analternative to the head protection device 10 shown in FIG. 2, whereinlike the head protection device 10 shown in FIG. 2 the outer part 13 isformed from a dimensionally stable material layer 15 which, as hasalready been explained in detail, is used to realize the shell functionintegrated in the receiving enclosure 11. Unlike the head protectiondevice 10 shown in FIG. 2, the head protection device 29 according toFIG. 3 however comprises a dimensionally compliant, flexible materiallayer 30 for forming the inner part 12. Situated at one point in thetransition region 27 between an edge region 23 of the inner materiallayer 30 and the edge region 25 of the outer material layer 13 is anon-return valve device 31, which allows an evacuation of the interiorspace 18 of the receiving enclosure 11. Said evacuation may be effectedautomatically during positioning of the head protection device 29 on thehead, whereby a yielding of the dimensionally compliant, in the presentcast flexible material layer 30 in the direction of the outer materiallayer 15 forming the outer part 13 is effected. The non-return valvedevice 31 comprises a handle 32, which is connected to a valve body 33,and counter to the action of a valve spring 34 allows an aeration of theinterior space 18 in cooperation with resilient restoring forces of thematerial layer 30.

FIG. 4 shows a body protection/support device in use as a splint device35, having an, in the present case, multiple arrangement of supportelements 36, 37, 38 and 39. The individual support elements 36 to 39 inthe present case are of an identical type and, in accordance with thebody protection/support device in the form of head protection device 10shown in FIG. 2, comprise a receiving enclosure 40, which is formed bytwo material layers 14, 15 and in the application of the bodyprotection/support device shown in FIG. 4 substantially has an elongatecushion format, wherein like the embodiment of the receiving enclosure11 shown in FIG. 2 in the case of the—in FIG. 4—left support element 36a receiving enclosure 40 is provided with a dimensionally stablematerial layer 15, which provides the support action needed for thesplint application, and a dimensionally compliant material layer 14,which enables a snug fit against the body part. As in the case of thereceiving enclosure 11 shown in FIG. 2, the receiving enclosure 40 isfilled with molded bodies 20, which in terms of their resilient orplastic properties are so selected that the desired adaptation isachieved simultaneously with minimal impairment of the support actionprovided by the outer material layer 15.

Unlike the left support element 36, the—in FIG. 4 right support element39 comprises an evacuable receiving enclosure 41 which, like theembodiment of the head protection device 10 shown in FIG. 3, is providedwith a non-return valve device 31. The evacuable design of the supportelement 39 enables uniform compression of the molded bodies 20 disposedin an interior space 42 so that transfer of the support action of thedimensionally stable outer material layer 15 to the body part may beeffected more directly and more effectively.

As was illustrated with the embodiment according to FIG. 4, it ispossible for the splint device 35 to be composed of both non-evacuablesupport elements and evacuable support elements in order to produce themost advantageous configuration of the splint device 35 for each givenapplication. Thus, in regions of the body part requiring less supportthan others, non-evacuable support elements may be used.

As is further clear from FIG. 4, in the splint device 35 the individualsupport elements 36 to 39 are arranged so as to be mechanicallyconnected, this being achieved in the present case by Velcro strips 43,44. For reliable positioning of the support elements, the latter may beconnected at least partially by foot loops 45, which are passed throughunder the foot and connect the support elements to one another.

The receiving enclosures 40 and 41 used to form the support elements 36to 39 in FIG. 4 and filled with molded bodies 20 may, if suitablydimensioned, also be used as mattresses (not shown here) of the typeusable, for example, to prevent bedsores. In said case, the adaptationof the dimensionally compliant material layer 14 achieved with orwithout a vacuum is used for adaptation to the body of the patient lyingon the mattress. The dimensionally stable material layer 50 in said caseforms an outer, dimensionally stable frame, which eliminates the need toprovide a suitable dimensionally stable frame for receiving themattress. Thus, in the embodiment as a mattress also, by virtue ofintegrating the reinforcing “shell function” in a material layer animportant advantage over known solutions is achieved.

While specific embodiments of the invention have been shown anddescribed in detail to illustrate the application of the principles ofthe invention, it will be understood that the invention may be embodiedotherwise without departing from such principles.

What is claimed is:
 1. A body protection/support device for arrangementon a body part, the device comprising: a receiving enclosure; a moldedbody filling of individual molded bodies accommodated in a receivingspace of said receiving enclosure, said receiving enclosure having abody part facing part facing the body part and an opposite partsubstantially remote from the body part, said body part icing part beingconnected to said opposite part to define said receiving space, saidopposite part being relatively rigid compared to said to said body partfacing part.
 2. The body protection/support device according to claim 1,wherein the opposite part and the body part facing part of the receivingenclosure are formed from a common base material so as to vergecontinuously one into the other, and the opposite part and the body partfacing part, in order to produce the differing degrees of rigidity, areprovided with different material admixtures.
 3. The bodyprotection/support device according to claim 1, wherein the oppositepart and the body part facing part of the receiving enclosure are formedfrom different materials.
 4. The body protection/support deviceaccording to claim 3, wherein for forming the opposite part and the bodypart facing part at least two material layers are provided which, forforming the receiving enclosure, are connected to one another in atransition region.
 5. The body protection/support device according toclaim 4, that the material layers are cohesively connected to oneanother in a transition region.
 6. The body protection/support deviceaccording to claim 5, wherein the material layers are connected to oneanother in the transition region by means of a thermobonded joint. 7.The body protection/support device according to claim 1, wherein atleast the opposite part is provided-as a molded part with adimensionally stable wall.
 8. The body protection/support deviceaccording to claim 7, wherein the opposite part and the body part facingpart are provided with a dimensionally stable wall.
 9. The bodyprotection/support device according to claim 7, wherein the oppositepart has a dimensionally stable wall and the body part facing part isprovided with a dimensionally compliant wall.
 10. The bodyprotection/support device according to claim 1, wherein the oppositepart and the body part facing part form an, on the whole, cup-shapedreceiving enclosure.
 11. The body protection/support device according toclaim 10, wherein the opposite part and the body part facing part areconnected in a sealed manner with a vacuum established in the receivingspace of the receiving.
 12. The body protection/support device accordingto claim 1, wherein the opposite part and the body part facing part forman, on the whole, annular receiving enclosure.
 13. The bodyprotection/support device according to claim 1, wherein the bodyprotection/support device is a splint device for use on a body part. 14.The body protection/support device according to claim 1, wherein thebody protection/support device forms a head protector.
 15. The bodyprotection/support device according to claim 1, wherein the forming theopposite part and the body part facing part using different materialtreatments.
 16. A method of protectioning/supporting a body part, themethod comprising the steps of: providing a receiving enclosure with abody part facing part connected to an opposite part to form a receivingspace; providing a molded body comprised of individual molded bodies;filling the receiving space with the individual molded bodies such thatthe individual molded bodies are accommodated in the receivingenclosure; forming the opposite part to be relatively rigid compared tothe body part facing part; applying the receiving enclosure with themolded body filling around the body part with the body part facing partin contact with or facing the body part.
 17. The method according toclaim 16, wherein the body protection/support device is used as a splintdevice applied on the body part.
 18. The method device according toclaim 16, wherein the body protection/support device is used as a headprotector applied on the head of a user.
 19. A body protection/supportdevice for arrangement on a body part, the device comprising: a firstpart having a first rigidity; a second part having a second rigidity,said first part being connected to said second part to form a retainingelement, each of said first part and said second part having an innersurface defining the extent of an inner retaining space of saidretaining element, said first rigidity being greater than said secondrigidity; and individual molded bodies accommodated in said receivingspace of said receiving enclosure, said retaining element being appliedto the body part with said second part having said second rigidityconforming to a shape of the body part and with the first part disposedopposite the second part and opposite the body part to form an outershell.